New iPod mini commands maximum buyer demand

DALLAS — In search of a replacement for his broken MP3 digital music player, Nathan Ward narrowed his choice to Apple's iPod mini and Dell's Digital Jukebox.

"The Dell's cheaper," Ward, 30, said as he examined a multihued array of $249 iPod minis at a Dallas Apple Store. The Dell is usually the same price, but the company has temporarily slashed it by $50.

Ward left without making a decision, although Apple's reputation for ease of use and the mini's business-card dimensions were appealing, he said. The mini weighs less than 4 ounces, holds about 1,000 songs and is smaller than the wallet-sized standard iPod and Dell.

Even if Ward had been ready to buy, he would have walked away from the Apple Store empty-handed. Demand for the iPod mini has taken off since its Feb. 20 debut, but supplies are short.

At the Apple Store, the best shoppers can do is put their names on a waiting list. Several other stores, including Best Buy, Circuit City, CompUSA and Target, quickly sell out each time a shipment arrives.

The mini's popularity highlights the increasing consumer demand for digital music, a trend driven in part by larger numbers of homes with high-speed Internet access.

Demand for the mini has prompted electronics manufacturer Hitachi to increase production of the hard drives Apple uses in the device.

Store officials say they get a half-dozen minis every couple of weeks and are sold out within hours. In comparison, it's not hard to find the standard iPod or Dell's Jukebox.

"We got five or six [minis] when Apple first sent them to each store," said Harold Floyd, sales manager at a CompUSA store in Ft. Worth. "They were gone immediately."

Floyd said the shortage is worse than the shortages that followed the introduction of video-game consoles such as Sony's PlayStation 2 and Microsoft's Xbox.

Apple, which makes one of every three MP3 players shipped to stores in the United States, said it took more than 100,000 orders for the mini before the device's debut. Apple's Web site advises buyers to expect shipping to take one to three weeks.

Apple has announced it is delaying sales of the mini outside the United States from April until July, citing demand "far exceeding the total planned supply through the end of June."

The shortage has sparked vigorous auction sales on eBay, where minis are selling for more than their list price. One day recently, an "almost new" silver mini went for $275, while "new in box" versions for immediate delivery were commanding prices topping $300.

The bidding was especially spirited among eBay users in Britain. One enterprising seller offering tips on how to locate a mini drew more than a dozen bids that topped $20 for the tips.